Producer Jerry Bruckheimer talks ‘Top Gun 2’

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer has claimed that a sequel to Top Gun is “closer and closer” to being made.

A sequel to the 1986 fighter pilot smash had long been rumoured to be in the works, but in August 2012 director Tony Scott died at the age of 68 after jumping from a bridge in Los Angeles. Subsequent reports suggested that plans for the film had fallen apart as there was no longer a director in place.

However, producer Bruckheimer has told The Huffington Post that a follow-up film is still in the works. “We’ve been trying to get that movie made for 30 years, and I think we’re getting closer and closer,” he said. “Don Simpson and I tried to develop something, we didn’t succeed. Tom Cruise took over, and he tried to develop something, and he didn’t succeed. Now we’re back at it.”

He also detailed a loose plot for the film, adding: “The concept is, basically, are the pilots obsolete because of drones. Cruise is going to show them that they’re not obsolete. They’re here to stay. It’s just getting to the starting place. Fortunately for Tom, he’s very busy, so you have to find a slot he can fit into and get a budget that Paramount feels they can make the picture.”

Cruise has also recently been linked with starring in a Jack Reacher sequel, and will also reprise his role as spy Ethan Hunt for a further Mission: Impossible film. The most recent film in the series, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, came out in 2011 and grossed nearly $700 million (£450 million) at the box office worldwide – the highest total of Cruise’s career.